KonMari your Wardrobe!

You may or may not have heard of Marie Kondo. She is the author of 'The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up' but it has been the launch of her Netflix series 'Tidying Up' which has inspired thousands of people to clean out their homes. She is renowned as our new 'life-changing guru' with her simple step of asking 'does this spark joy?' before deciding to keep an item. While this question can be tricky when it comes to things you genuinely need but don't find joy in, say a wooden spoon, we find it is the perfect question when cleaning out your wardrobe.

If you're anything like us and love to shop, 'tidying up' immediately makes you think of your over-flowing wardrobe. After countless hours spent organising and rethinking our clothing, we have just about perfected the art of the wardrobe clean-out and are here to share our fail-proof tips.

Before we start, there are a few reasons why you might need a wardrobe clean-out:

Perhaps you have so many clothes you can't find anything to wear

Maybe you are keeping clothes that are too big or too small in case they fit you again one day

Or you could be in another stage of your life and your wardrobe just doesn't suit your lifestyle any more.

Look for multiples of items, like say, black T shirts or jeans. Keep the ones in the best quality and the most flattering cut.

Some items, like a band shirt or the dress you wore when you were prosposed to can be kept for sentimental reasons.

Discard the pieces that no longer suit your lifestyle; like officewear when you have changed careers

Take the pieces in need of repair to your local alterationist or tailor. Or DIY whilst you're watching TV

Pop all your clothes back into your wardrobe and sort by colour or style or season; whatever works best for you

a great way to work out what pieces you don't wear is to use the hanger method. Every time you wear a piece and re-hang it, turn the hanger around. At the end of the season, review all the seasonal pieces that haven't had their hangers turned around and do another cull

if you don't have enough room to have all your clothes in your wardrobe, then store your out of season clothes in vacuum storage bags and pop them under your bed or on your top shelf

stack items in your drawers, like T shirts or soft pants, vertically instead of horizontally. It will save space and make it easier for you to find a particular item.

identify the gaps in your wardrobe and make a list so you know what to keep an eye out for when you're shopping

The most important thing to remember when you're doing a clean out is that they don't just disappear once you get rid of them, they often end up in landfill, even if they are donated. Make sure you're recycling your clothes resposibly, the Victorian Government have a great guide you can read here. Also check out Planet Ark, Australian Clothing Recyclers and Clothing Clean Up.

We hope these tips help your wardrobe to work for you, not against you!